As coronavirus testing capabilities come to Wisconsin, researchers are doing cutting-edge work to find a cure and vaccine in Madison.
Asst. Professor of Biochemistry Robert Kirchdoerfer leads a dedicated coronavirus program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison that is currently working to come up with a cure and vaccine for the novel coronavirus as it spreads throughout the world.
“It’s a very complicated process,” Kirchdoerfer said. “We use really high resolution imaging techniques with a brand new Cryo-electron microscopy center here on campus to essentially examine how the virus works in the first step to figuring out how to defeat the virus. So we look at a viral entry, how the virus gets into the target cells, as well as how the virus makes more copies of its genome.”
Between innovating ways to battle the virus, Kirchdoerfer educates the public, including speaking at the ‘Perspectives on China’s Coronavirus Crisis’ panel sponsored by the Wisconsin China Initiative and the Center for East Asian Studies Monday night.
Speakers’ topics ranged from molecular virology to the spread of misinformation on social media in China and beyond. The head of the Wisconsin China Initiative, Jerry Yin, said the United States needs to be ready just in case.
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